It’s a headache, isn’t it? The whole menu options thing. Providing food for people is just not as simple as it once was. And it is no secret that many chefs still find providing vegan options challenging. Vegan granola is a great start.

Why Vegan Granola?

The simplest answer to that question is why not? As more and more customers seek out vegan options, it makes sense to provide delicious food that covers all bases.

Plant-based food is becoming more mainstream and the goal now is not just to offer vegan options but to make them so good that they are simply THE option. Your vegan customers will still ask ‘Is it vegan’ but to everyone else, it simply won’t matter.

This blurring of the lines and providing food that everyone can enjoy can be a real plus in business terms. Not only does it make quality (not dietary differences) the overall goal but fewer products mean less waste and increased consistency. It really does benefit your bottom line.

The Granola Bowl

The granola bowl steadily climbed the ranks to become a breakfast favourite, transcending fleeting food trends to cement itself as a beloved staple. Whether your customers prefer to grab and go from the fridge or enjoy a proper sit-down, the granola yogurt combo remains a popular choice whatever time of day.

What Makes a Good Granola Bowl?

Call us biased, but the key to a good granola bowl is obviously good granola. Aim for good quality ingredients all around and you are onto a winner.

Good quality ingredients

It goes without saying that better-quality ingredients add up to a better dish. Choose food that has been grown and produced with integrity and is minimally processed. Better for the planet, better for the palate, and better for the plate.

Choosing a great quality Greek yoghurt, a granola designed for purpose, and fresh seasonal fruit, is the first step towards a yogurt bowl that they keep coming back for.

With its crunchy clusters and classic taste our roasted almond crunch vegan granola is ideal for your yogurt bowls.

Keep it simple

The knock-on effect of choosing quality ingredients is that a little goes a lot further. Simplicity is key when ingredients can shine.

The Vegan Yogurt Bowl

We hate to point out the obvious, but isn’t yogurt generally NOT vegan? So why bother with vegan granola?

You could offer a vegan granola bowl without yogurt, but that would be somewhat missing the point. Close cousins to the granola bowl are the acai bowl and the smoothie bowl, but again slightly missing the point.

There are now many excellent brands of vegan yoghurt on the market, or you could make your own. Unfortunately, yogurt is one area where the vegan variety may not quite match up to the real deal so for the time being you may want to keep stocking your favourite dairy-based Greek yoghurt too.

How to make vegan yoghurt

The primary ingredients you’ll need are non-dairy milk and a yogurt starter culture. Different plant milks give different textures so it may take a bit of trial and error.

Here’s a basic step-by-step guide to get you started:

Choose Your Milk

Start with your preferred non-dairy milk. Make sure it doesn’t contain any additives that might inhibit the fermentation process. Homemade non-dairy milk, and store-bought varieties labelled with minimal ingredients are ideal.

Heat the Milk

Pour the non-dairy milk into a saucepan and heat it over medium heat until it starts to simmer, typically at around 82°C. This step helps to change the protein structure, so it will set as yogurt.

Cool the Milk

After heating, let the milk cool to around 110°F (43°C). You can use a thermometer to ensure the temperature is exactly right for adding the starter culture.

Add the Starter Culture

Once the milk has cooled, stir in the yogurt starter culture. You can buy a vegan yogurt starter culture from health food shops, use a probiotic capsule, or use a couple of tablespoons of pre-made vegan yogurt as a starter.

Incubate the Mixture

Pour the mixture into a container (a metal Gastronorm is ideal )and incubate it at a consistently warm temperature (around 43°C). The top of an industrial fridge should be warm enough, or an oven set to a very low temperature. Or you could use a commercial yogurt-making machine. Let it sit undisturbed for 6-12 hours depending on the desired thickness and tanginess of your yogurt.

Refrigerate

Once the yogurt has set, refrigerate it for at least a couple of hours before eating. This will help it firm up further and improve its flavour. You may want to strain it through a nut bag or a clean tea towel to firm it up even further.

As we have seen, choosing a vegan granola to cover all your breakfast bowl needs is a great step towards incorporating plant-based foods into your standard stock. Not only will everybody love it, but it keeps things simple and helps to prevent unnecessary waste.

Explore our range of other healthy cereals for your breakfast and all-day cafe menu.

This article was reproduced on this site with permission from operafoods.com.au the “Healthy Cereal Wholesalers”.
See original article:- Choose Vegan Granola for your Granola Bowl Menu